Albanian local elections mark significant progress

TIRANA, 2 October 2000 - The 1 October 2000 local government elections in Albania marked significant progress towards meeting the standards for democratic elections, concluded the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (OSCE/ODIHR) election observation mission, deployed in close co-operation with the Council of Europe Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CoE/CLRAE).

More than 251 international observers of the two missions found these elections were held, in contrast with previous occasions, in a tense but remarkably peaceful atmosphere with only a few isolated incidents of violence. This was a reflection of restraint exercized by political parties and important measures undertaken by the Government to improve public order. In another departure from previous elections, a broad spectrum of media offered voters a wide range of information.

On election day, voting was carried out in an orderly manner in a majority of municipalities, voting center commissions generally administered the procedures correctly, and police conduct was appropriate. Almost all voters were able to cast ballots despite some initial concerns with the voter registers. Some irregularities were noted, but none seemed significant enough to impact the outcome. The counting of the results was also done in accordance to the law.

These elections took place under a reformed constitutional, legislative, and administrative framework. A new election code, adopted after multiparty roundtable discussions with the participation of international experts, in general provided a sound basis for democratic elections.

The OSCE/ODIHR long-term election observation mission noted in a statement of preliminary findings and conclusions (attached) that, since the 1997 crisis, the Albanian political scene has remained highly polarized, with the opposition Democratic Party (DP) rejecting most of the reforms. Also, the DP criticized these elections, ignoring the accomplishments and seizing on the shortcomings. Indeed, there were deficiencies, including:

• Concerns about the independence of the Central Election Commission (CEC), though its performance was fair during the current elections;
• Inconsistent transitional provisions in the election code introduced by the parliamentary majority, compromising the political balance on lower election commissions;
• Disputes surrounding the establishment of election commissions at all levels, contributing to tight deadlines missed in the electoral process; and
• Errors and omissions in the new voters register.

Although late in the process, the CEC undertook far reaching measures to improve the impartiality of election commissions and to ensure that eligible voters could take part in the elections.

For further information, please contact:

Eugenio Polizzi, Head of the OSCE/ODIHR Election Observation Mission, in Tirana (tel.: + 355-42-230012)

Elsa Fenet, OSCE/ODIHR Election Advisor, in Warsaw (tel.: +48-22-520-0600)